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Exercise

Chat to other fitness enthusiasts on our Exercise forum.

Are you over 50 and really toned and fit?

92 replies

MistyBay · 24/09/2023 21:38

Am very interested to find out. I do quite a bit of exercise - I’m consistent rather than a ‘beast myself’ type.

im seeing very good results over the last two years since I gave up alcohol and sugar and started exercising most days. I walk for sn hour every day on top.

I’m wondering what I can plausibly expect fitness-wise now I’m 50.

if I lift enough weights will I get rid of bat wings completely?

if I eat well and do enough cardio and yoga, will I get a waist?

are you over 50 and do you have a body of a 25 year old is what I want to know?

i need to know what to aim for.

OP posts:
Watchingthegp · 24/09/2023 21:40

I'm pretty fit and toned, run ultra marathons and am 58 but cannot for love nor money locate a waist any more

Taylorscat · 24/09/2023 21:43

I’m following this thread! I swim 2k 3x a week and don’t seem to be losing weight or changing shape!! I’m coming off ADs which is very hard and could explain the weight but I don’t seem to be gaining any tone either ! Thinking of upgrading my membership and adding gym work x2 a week mainly for my arms .

MistyBay · 24/09/2023 21:54

So I have never really had a waist until I started my regime. Now I’ve got a better waist than I have had since teenager. Albeit with a few stretch marks.

this is also only on days when I don’t bloat.

so right now I’m just past my period and my waist is 29.5 inches, it used to be around 32.

it’s getting ever so slightly better as time goes on. But it feels like one step forward and one step back. I think nothing is working and then wow! I go all concave.

like I said I have done slow and steady and this has been at least 18 months of very regular diet and exercise. But nothing extreme. Very do-able.

am wondering what’ll happen if I just step it up a bit more and if I can start to really be toned.

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doodleygirl · 24/09/2023 21:57

I’m 59, very toned upper body, lift weights, no bat wings yet, run about 3 times a week and box once a week. Lower body is definitely not as toned as upper!

MistyBay · 24/09/2023 21:57

Watchingthegp · 24/09/2023 21:40

I'm pretty fit and toned, run ultra marathons and am 58 but cannot for love nor money locate a waist any more

This is not uncommon. My friend does ultras, and she has a big waist. She runs all the time. It doesn’t seem fair.

i do not think running is good for waists in middle age as it stores stress hormones and therefore fat around the middle.

sane for you @Taylorscat swimming twice per week is unlikely to work. You need to do it more like five sadly.

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MistyBay · 24/09/2023 22:00

doodleygirl · 24/09/2023 21:57

I’m 59, very toned upper body, lift weights, no bat wings yet, run about 3 times a week and box once a week. Lower body is definitely not as toned as upper!

So you carry your weight around the bum and thighs? It’s hard to get rid of but nonetheless you keep fat stores away from your vital organs which is healthier.

your workouts sound full on. I am interested in that type of thing now. I need to toughen up.

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MissBiljanaElectronika · 24/09/2023 22:02

I am 52 and still have a waist, but that’s mainly due to the fact that I have remarkably wide hips 😁

I am just built with wide hip bones and I think that my waist has definitely thickened a little bit, but it would take a lot to be overall as wide as my hips 😂

I also have a big bum

i think it’s just a lottery where you carry that bit of extra weight?

I have found that cutting back seriously on alcohol and upping sport has helped me keeping the weight from going up and keeping bmi around 22-23

am fully aware that can all still change once I hit the dreaded meno though

MistyBay · 24/09/2023 22:03

im wondering what would happen if I went supersonic and literally devoted all my spare time to fitness.

does anyone actually do this? Like work out once in morning and then in eve too (but different muscle groups)

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Runrabbitrun2 · 24/09/2023 22:03

One lady in our running club is 60 and looks fantastic. She told me she does a YouTube kettle workout each day and runs 5 k three times a week. On her advice I’ve started the kettle bell workouts and my menopause waist is starting to reduce ( running 30 miles a week for years hadn’t touched it) .
I quite like Caroline Girvan workouts but there are loads available.

Taylorscat · 24/09/2023 22:04

Id be happy to swim x5 a week but I worry about injury. I was swimming 1k x 5 then I read it was better to swim further but less. So that’s why I’m thinking about adding gym work in. I don’t want to run as I got injured which took 2 years to sort - so thinking of adding in rowing plus weights to tone my arms .

Widowsfire · 24/09/2023 22:06

I'm 53 and I run. A lot. I do some yoga and pikates which keeps my arms toned buy I wouldn't say defined.

I mix with runners so in my world I'm fairly average, but in the outside world, goodness I look amazing by comparison 😆 No honestly, I don't have bingo wings and I'm happy in short shorts. My stomach is flat.

Taylorscat · 24/09/2023 22:06

I think I have a waist still but I’ve not really assessed as I hate my shape currently. Need to lose 2 stone ideally although 1 1/2 would put me in decent shape

CinemaCrazy · 24/09/2023 22:06

Not me but a lot of ladies at my gym have amazing bodies and are are over 50. They seem to do two different exercise classes in a row a few times a week. I’ve also overheard quite a few talking about their very high step count. I’d say their BMIs are about 20, they look very slender and toned. They are all wealthy so I imagine that eat very well. They wear bikinis and have no stomach fat, most do have quite flat bottoms that look nicer in clothes than in their bikinis.

Taylorscat · 24/09/2023 22:06

Yoga every day is great, I do this at home. It definitely helps with flexibility at least - and stomach toning .

MissBiljanaElectronika · 24/09/2023 22:07

In terms of what to aim for, aim high!

I love challenging myself physically and am still competing in my sport with 20-somethings. I do about 6-8 hours a week plus walking an hour every day (dogs)

i could do “vets” but I like the challenge of competing against younger people (including men)

aim high. Getting super fit in middle age is fantastically empowering IMO

MistyBay · 24/09/2023 22:10

MissBiljanaElectronika · 24/09/2023 22:02

I am 52 and still have a waist, but that’s mainly due to the fact that I have remarkably wide hips 😁

I am just built with wide hip bones and I think that my waist has definitely thickened a little bit, but it would take a lot to be overall as wide as my hips 😂

I also have a big bum

i think it’s just a lottery where you carry that bit of extra weight?

I have found that cutting back seriously on alcohol and upping sport has helped me keeping the weight from going up and keeping bmi around 22-23

am fully aware that can all still change once I hit the dreaded meno though

God I hope not. I know it’s supposed to be that way but I want to fight it all the way. I like my newfound almost-waist.

i have a thick middle and slim limbs. But I can still put on weight, it just goes to my middle first.

If it gets out if hand, I look extremely grumpy, not all curvy and womanly. It’s a disaster. Which is why I need to just have no fat.

OP posts:
MistyBay · 24/09/2023 22:10

I look grumpy but frumpy is what I meant to say!!

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MistyBay · 24/09/2023 22:11

MissBiljanaElectronika · 24/09/2023 22:07

In terms of what to aim for, aim high!

I love challenging myself physically and am still competing in my sport with 20-somethings. I do about 6-8 hours a week plus walking an hour every day (dogs)

i could do “vets” but I like the challenge of competing against younger people (including men)

aim high. Getting super fit in middle age is fantastically empowering IMO

Great! Do you have any body fat or are you athletic?

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MissingMoominMamma · 24/09/2023 22:11

I’m 57 and have a very strong bottom and legs, due to hiking and swimming. My upper body is quite weak though, and I’d like to change that.

Daisy03 · 24/09/2023 22:18

I'm 49 and have gone through different exercise regimes throughout life. Went 15 years of being pure cardio, was always skinny fat or chubby.
10 years of lifting weights now with only walking as cardio, 4 hours a week on average, keeps the weight off my stomach, and the rest of me is toned, can also eat far more than I did then.

FabFitFifties · 24/09/2023 22:33

My sister is 59 and is very toned with great muscle definition in upper body, and flat stomach. Menopause has robbed her of her waist though. She does bootcamp type workouts, and likes kettlebells. She gets up at the crack of dawn to exercise daily.

GreyBlackBay · 24/09/2023 22:43

You can't really change your basic shape, is it fat that's obscuring your waist or is it just the rib cage spread and muscle thickening? I had a repeat of a scan that I had 10 years ago and my ribcage is definitely wider and looks lower too - is that a thing?

You can lose fat but can't make it come off anywhere specific. You could work your bum and thighs to make those muscles larger which would make your waist look thinner in comparison but not sure it'd help that much.

Exercising to lose weight is very short term. Better to eat less but there comes a point where you lack nutrition if you keep cutting back (worry about osteoporosis!) , and your face will look haggard!

I working on accepting it but all power to you to achieve everything you can, you sound very committed.

Perfectlystill · 24/09/2023 22:49

There are lots of women on Insta you can follow to see what extreme fitness in your fifties and begin looks like. Train with Joan is one I follow and she posts before and after photos.

MistyTrains2 · 25/09/2023 00:29

I'm 43..but I'm aiming for being fit in my 50s. I spent a while looking for people in their 40s and 50s for body inspiration on Instagram.

mcfmoya
sarahgearino_coach
jeana.aragon
Davina Mccall
taralaferrara (in 30s)
strong.by.sarah (in 30s)

You have to remember bodies can look different in different light, angles etc. and of course everyone puts their best shots online.

From the people I follow the consistent messages are - eat enough protein, progressively overload, some cardio is good, get steps in.

Scottishflower65 · 25/09/2023 00:50

Nearly 59. 38-28-39 so nice hourglass. Weights 5 times a week. Bat wings almost non existent. Waist lovely, but working on smaller.

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